Tk 250 cr crop damage a year for Tk 39 lakh project

The silted Chamti river in Sunamganj is now virtually a plain land during summer. PHOTO: STAR

Boro crops worth about Tk 250 crore are damaged by early floods in four upazilas in Sunamganj district almost every as a Tk 39 lakh project is yet to implemented.

The four affected upazilas are Derai, Shulla, Jagannathpur and Jamalganj.

The project involves re-excavation of three kilometres bed of Chamti river and repair of a breach in a haor (water body) protection embankment at Faizullapur in Shulla upazila. The breach at Faizullapur was created in 2001.

After crop damage in successive years and repeated appeals by Awami League lawmaker Suranjit Sengupta and local people, Sunamganj Water Development Board (WDB) submitted the project last year but it is yet to get the higher authorities' nod, WDB officials said.

This year, farmers in the area are passing sleepless nights fearing flush flood as harvest of IRRI-Boro crops started days ago.

The three kilometre area of Chamti river from Brahmangaon to Mourapur has been completely silted. The silted river can not retain waters rolling from nearby Bhanda and Boram haors and upstream areas, which causes flush flood and damages crops in the low-lying four upazilas, people in the area said.

Suranjit Sengupta, a lawmaker from Derai-Shulla constituency urged the authorities this year also to implement the project. But there has not been any progress in its approval, WDB sources told this correspondent.

Only Boro can be cultivated in the area. Once flooded, the area remains under water for rest of the year and farmers can not raise any crop.

The WDB officials said the stagnant water also keeps vast lands in Derai and Shulla upazilas uncultivated even in dry season.

Immediate re-excavation of the four kilometre bed of Chamti river from Brahmangaon to Mourapur is necessary to save the area from recurring crop loss, they said.